Middlesex Community College
Syllabus
Course: ECN 102 (3 Credits)
Course Title: Principles of Microeconomics
Department: Social Sciences
Semester: Spring 2007
CRN: 1134
Lecture Hours: Students may log on to the WebCT course website anytime.
Location: Online. Students are expected to log on to the course website each week.
Instructor: Professor A. Payne
Office Hours: by appointment
Office Location: campus
Phone: (860) 533-0488, email strongly preferred
E-mail: Students should use the email feature of the WebCT course website. If the site is down, students should use apayne@mcc.commnet.edu. In order to have access to this information when the site is down, students should print a copy of this course syllabus during the first week of the term.
Text: Microeconomics, 7th edition
Author: Arnold
CATALOG COURSE DESCRIPTION: An elementary study of the principles related to relative scarcity and resource allocation. The course provides a basic study of a market economy and various kinds of market structures. Some time is devoted to cost and to labor economics. Should be taken before ECN 101. Prerequisites: MAT 95 required; English 101 and Math 137 recommended.
SCOPE OF THE COURSE: Upon completion of the course, students will have a basic understanding of the economic system, especially with respect to individuals, households, and businesses. Objectives include discussion related to (1) the definition of markets and how markets work, (2) supply, demand, and elasticity, (3) firm behavior and industry organization (competitive markets, monopolies, oligopolies), and (4) *diversity issues involving discrimination in earnings, income inequality, and poverty. *This course is a diversity “D” course.
ADA ACCOMMODATIONS STATEMENT: Students with physical or learning disabilities who may require accommodations are encouraged to contact the Counseling Office. After disclosing the nature of the disability, students are urged to discuss their needs with individual instructors. This should be done at the beginning of each semester. Instructors, in conjunction with appropriate college officials, will provide assistance and/ or accommodations only to those students who have completed this process.
ACADEMIC ETHICS STATEMENT: “At Middlesex Community-Technical College we expect the highest standards of academic honesty. Academic dishonesty is prohibited in accordance with the Board of Trustees’ Proscribed Conduct Policy in Section 5.2.1 of the Board of Trustees’ Policy Manual. This policy prohibits cheating on examinations, unauthorized collaboration on assignments, unauthorized access to examinations or course materials, plagiarism, and other proscribed activities. Plagiarism is defined as the use of another’s idea(s) or phrase(s) and representing that/ those idea(s) as your own, either intentionally or unintentionally.” (Board of Trustee’s Policy 5.2.1)
EVALUATION AND GRADING:
Field Assignment – 15%
Discussion – 30%
Quizzes – 30%
Final Paper – 25%
Field Assignment - Students will select an article from a scholarly book, journal, or magazine and research the economy of an individual, household, or business. Each week, approximately 2 students will present their Field Assignment by posting the assignment in the Discussion Area by Wednesday at 10pm. Presentation dates have been assigned randomly. No late work will be accepted. Students are strongly encouraged to complete work early. For details, open the Field Assignment folder on the course home page.
Discussion – Approximately 2 Field Assignments will be posted by Wednesdays at 10pm each week. All other students should then post at least one question and/ or comment in response to each field assignment by Sunday at 11:59pm. Feel free to post more than once. These responses (about one paragraph in length) must be detailed, scholarly responses that demonstrate your critical thinking skills. They should also demonstrate that you have read and understood the student’s field assignment. Responses such as “good job” will receive zero credit. All students should make sure to return frequently to the Discussion area to respond to questions and comments. Each weekly discussion is available 7 days prior to the due date, and students are strongly encouraged to complete work early. No late work will be accepted.
Quizzes – Each week, students should read the assigned chapter then take a brief quiz. Quizzes may be taken only once, and students are allowed an unlimited amount of time for each quiz. Quizzes are due by Sunday at 10pm each week. Every quiz may be taken as early as the first day of class, and students are strongly encouraged to complete work early. No late work will be accepted.
Final Paper – Students will develop an analysis of the economic impact of and to an organization in the United States. The analysis will require that students utilize concepts from various chapters throughout the text. The final paper is due by Tuesday at 10pm of Week 16 (finals week). No late work will be accepted. Students are strongly encouraged to complete work early. For details, open Final Paper on the course home page (this icon will not appear until later in the course).
GENERAL OBJECTIVES OF THE COURSE
(Statement identifying educational goals of the course)
The student will become acquainted with:
1. the definition of markets and how markets work
2. concepts of supply, demand, and elasticity,
3. firm behavior and industry organization (competitive markets, monopolies, oligopolies)
4. diversity issues including income inequality, poverty, and discrimination with respect to age, gender, ethnicity, and socio-economic status (referenced throughout the course; more specifically presented in chapters 19 and 20)
SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES BY 5 INSTRUCTIONAL COMPONENTS
(Statement identifying what the student will be able to do at the completion of the component)
The student will be able to do the following:
Introduction to Economics
To define economics and its goals.
To understand how economists look at consumer, producer, and government behavior and their interactions.
To understand how economists conduct research and utilize economic terminology.
To read, interpret, analyze, and create graphs, charts, and tables.
To apply the theory of comparative advantage to everyday life and national policy.
To understand opportunity costs and trade-offs that people face.
Market Interactions
To understand the nature of competitive markets and the role of prices.
To examine what determines the demand or supply of a good in a competitive market.
To understand how supply and demand together set the price of a good and the quantity sold.
To understand the determinants of demand and supply elasticity.
To apply the concept of elasticity in different markets.
To analyze the impact of elasticity to target different cultural, ethnic, economic, gender, and age groups.
To examine the impact of government intervention on competitive markets.
To understand the differing impact of minimum wage laws with respect to age, gender, socio-economic and ethnic status.
Consumer and Producer Efficiency; Causes of Inefficiency
To examine the link between buyers' willingness to pay for a good and the demand curve.
To examine the link between sellers' costs of producing a good and the supply curve.
To define and measure consumer and producer surplus.
To discuss the distribution of market surplus among different groups.
To identify productively-efficient points in the goods market.
To understand the nature of externalities, public goods, and common resources.
To analyze the effects of government policy aimed at solving the problem of externalities.
To recognize government policy aimed at helping specific market and demographic segments, including the very young, elderly and socio-economically disadvantaged.
Producer Behavior and the Organization of Industry
To analyze the link between a firm's production process and its total costs.
To understand the relationship between short-run and long-run costs.
To identify the characteristics of industrial markets.
To differentiate between different market structures.
To identify profit-maximizing quantities of output given industrial structure, production costs, and output prices.
To evaluate various public policies aimed at solving the problems of imperfect competition.
To understand the existence and causes of price discrimination.
Factors of Production
To analyze resource demand of competitive, profit-maximizing firms.
To understand the relationship between factor prices and the marginal product of the factor.
To analyze the effect of a change in the supply of a single factor of production on the earnings of all other factors.
To explain market and social forces that lead to differences in earnings.
To analyze wages disparities among different demographic groups based on gender, age, and ethnic origin.
To analyze the effectiveness of minimum wage laws for groups based on age, gender, culture and ethnic origin.
*The instructor reserves the right to make changes to the course syllabus at any time.